Post by Yoko on Feb 25, 2010 10:03:36 GMT -6
OOC: Hey guys. I'm still experimenting with names Spore so bear with me and tell me when you see one you like for Emberpaw.
Eclipseclaw: And so it came to pass that Snakestar's time had ended. One might think that such a crushing blow would cripple ShadowClan, but that one has never met the likes of Twistedclaw. A fierce warrior! He is, fearless, mercilesss and- Well, let me put it this way. He was my mentor. His leadership led ShadowClan like a fierce storm over the forestland. His loss was an even greater tragedy. And now I continue my dark tale. The Rise and Fall of Three of the greatest cats ever known to our Great Clan!
(Lightning flashes overhead and rain pours down as though a waterfall was overhead rather than the massive black clouds. An ominous wind blew along the border between Wind and Shadow. Standing on the far edge of the more were three figures of the utmost importance to the events ahead. Lizardeye, Feathercloud, and Twistedclaw. More Thunder)
Lizardeye (yelling over the thunder and wind): AND REMEMBER TO REMAIN OUT OF WINDCLAN'S EYE! THE WIND MAY BE BOUND BY THE WARRIOR CODE TO NOT CAUSE YOU HARM, BUT THEY ARE HARDLY LIKELY TO FOLLOW IT IN THEIR ENRAGED AND STARVING STATE!
(Twistedclaw nodded. He would rather not go, that much was obvious, but Lizardeye had so insisted that this took priority over vengeance. His eyes gleaming with fierceness, he turned to Feathercloud. The thunder and wind died down momentarily.)
Twistedclaw: 'Tis time for thee to return to camp.
Feathercloud (shaking her head): Thou Cans't seriously expect me to remain there when danger lies so near thee.
Twistedclaw (snarling a bit): A good warrior thou may be, but a good ear, no. Look 't me. I am thine leader, would thou not follow mine orders?
Feathercloud: I would follow thee to the death, but such an order from my leader will surely lead him to death, therefore I shalt follow happily.
Twistedclaw (a small smirk): Thou art too witty. (turns to Liazrdeye): Can thou spares't her?
Lizardeye nods.
Twistedclaw: Then she shalt come. Brother, take care. I trust Embereye has everything in order until my return.
(The two remaining brothers touch foreheads, silently remembering the third. Then they went their separate ways. Feathercloud and Twistedclaw padding in the open moor, unsheltered from the pelting rain and roaring wind. They pad in silence for a long while, side by side, though Twistedclaw was two pawsteps ahead and glaring straight forward.)
Feathercloud (quietly): I am sorry, for Snakestar, I mean.
(Twistedclaw continues to glare in silence. His brother had not been dead but a single night, and he had not spoken of it since the vigil.)
Feathercloud (having sensed his guilt): 'Twas not your fault.
Twistedclaw (growling): Dost thou know nothing?! 'Twas no cat's fault but mine. I am more guilty than even the traitor Icepelt! I might has well have cut my brother down myself!
Feathercloud (shocked by the outburst): That's not true, you would have defended him-
Twistedclaw: Would have! But I was not there! I swore to protect him!
Feathercloud: But...you couldn't have known...
Twistedclaw (growling): I should have seen it! What business is it of yours anyway?! I don't need the pity of my Clan, I need their obedience!
(Twistedclaw whips around and pads away. Feathercloud glares after him for him for a moment, then continues to follow, further behind in silence.)
(End Scene 1)
(The camp is blackened, morbid for their proud leader's death. The kits do not play. The queens are silent. The elders do not leave their den. The warriors, even under Emberflight's commands, are slow to their duties. Lizardeye returns, eyes cold and unmoved as ever. Eclipseclaw pads towards the Medicine Cat, greeting him warmly for she knew his pains.)
Lizardeye (coldly): I've some business to attend. Should Emberflight need me, tell her I'll be but a moment.
(He turns and disappears into the leader's den. Certain queens notice and turn their heads in anticipation. An arguement can be heard through the rain and after a long while...Lightningclaw stalks out angrily, carrying her kits roughly by the scruffs of their necks. The queens back away quickly as they enter the nursery. No more is said. Lizardeye disappears into the Medicine Cat Den, the deed is done.)
(Out on the moor, unsheltered from the pelting rain and roaring winds, the two ShadowClan cats bravely make their way. Four Shadow-like figures dot the grey plains ahead, nearly invisible amongst the striking silver rain drops.)
Feathercloud (calling over the rain): Twistedclaw, the danger approaches!
Twistedclaw (glancing in the direction of the coming patrol): This way!
(He ducks into one of the very fer dips in the moorland. He, being of less than average size, hides in the tall dry grass. And Feathercloud, being of an even smaller kind, disappears completely. Enter a rather rough looking patrol, far thinner than normal, but at least not all of their ribs show.)
Hawkflight: Thoust certain of thine eyes?
Doveclaw (hissing): Thou dares't question my senses? I've ten times more than thee these days.
Hawkflight: And less wit. If they were here, they would hear us.
Doveclaw: Let them hear and flee! We shan't hide from them! What Clan Cats we are, to fear on our own territory! Death to Shadow-!
(Twistedclaw leaps out of the tall grasses, a flash of gleaming claws in the bright white lightning. Hawkflight whips around, but the two cats have already vanished in the grass. Hissing can be heard mingled with the pouring of rain. A flash of lightning reveals Feathercloud's eyes amongst the grass, and Hawkflight pounces at her, she dives to the right and they two disappear into the grass.)
Smokestorm (bewildered and desparately searching the grass): Doveclaw! Hawkflight! Come Bristletail, stay near!
Bristletail (fierce): Cowards! I thinks't they be of Shadow!
(An eery silence falls upon the moor. Nothing can be heard but the pouring rain. Both young warriors were soaked to their very bones and the chilling wind was merciless. Neither dare to speak a word, but it doesn't matter. Feathercloud leaps for Bristletail's throat. The young warrior is brought down but claws merciliessly at the tiny she-cat. Smokestorm bites at Feathercloud's tail, but is quickly dragged off by Twistedclaw, who wastes no time delivering a silent, killing, bite. He rushes to aid Feathercloud, who has gone limp. Bristletail puts up more of a struggle, their battle lasting for longer than Twistedclaw had hoped for. Bristletail, being the larger cat, manages to knock Twistedclaw onto his side.)
Bristletail (growling and raising his claw to give a death blow): This is your end, Twistedclaw!
(Feathercloud leaps out of the grass and bites deep and hard into Bristletail's throat. He writhes and drops to the ground to shake her off, but she holds on fiercely, using her claws to aid her until the brave WindClan Warrior falls at last.)
Twistedclaw (back on his paws): Feathercloud? Where art thou? Feathercloud!
Feathercloud (emerging from the grass, limping and bleeding): Here...Twistedclaw...I'm here.
Twistedclaw (rushing to her side, though admittedly, he looked no better): We must go nowl. Others will come looking. This way!
(Both flee quickly, despite limping and pain, towards Mothermouth)
(Lizardeye moves quickly around the Medicine Cat Den, keeping note of the supplies. A lot had been used in the Battle with ThunderClan and the supplies was nearly normal again. They would need a true surplus to face RiverClan. Enter Brindlepelt.)
Brindlepelt (cautiously): Lizardeye, A thorn has thrusted into Snowfeather's paw.
Lizardeye (continuing his work): I'll see to 't once I finish.
Brindlepelt (quietly, looking at the stacks of herbs): Is it not as important...
Lizardeye: No 'Tis not.
Brindlepelt: What an interesting Medicine Cat thou makest.
Lizardeye: What a strange warrior, that stands and talks, and stares, but does not return to her nobel duty of Clan care and defense.
Brindlepelt (annoyed): I'll forgive that...as you mourn your brother.
Lizardeye: I mourn him not.
Brindlepelt (shaking her head pitying): Thou liest.
Lizardeye (eyeing her with a icy-fire): I. Mourn. Him. Naught.
Brindlepelt (bristling): Why deny something so natural?
Lizardeye: Why insist on what is not there? I tell you, I mourn him not. He made the elementary mistake of dropping his guard. He paid the price of it, and now Twistedclaw suffers the burden. Mourn my mouse-brained brother, never.
Brindlepelt (horrified): I know your pain! Why do you lie so?! You wrong your brother in his grave! I know your grief already, so take back all thoust said!
(Thunder crashes)
Lizardeye (growing angered): Know my grief? KNOW MY GRIEF?! No cat can ever know my grief! My grief would storm the skies and make black the sun! My grief would freeze the prey in solid ice for eternity! My grief would flood rivers, enrage the winds, spark fires, and deafen Thunder itself! Know my grief how dare you!
Brindlepelt (furious): Thou hast lost one single littermate and thou wails like a kit! What knowst thee of a mother's grief?
Lizardeye: Whos't liar now?! Thou art not a mother!
Brindlepelt (shocked and deeply wounded): No I am not...
(Thunder echoes. She disappears from the Medicine Cat Den, into the pouring rain. Lizardeye watches her go, not seeing the truth.)
(Thunder flashes. Twistedclaw and Feathercloud have paused somewhere around the Loner's Barn, constantly watching their backs as they clean their wounds. Feathercloud licks one of the several nasty clawmarks on his shoulders, all from attempts to bite his neck.)
Feathercloud (watching the steady stream of blood)): Should we turn back?
Twistedclaw: And make the entire journey pointless? No. How badly hast thou been injured.
Feathercloud (quietly): 'Tis not my injuries I fear for...
(Feathercloud herself bears a gash on her chest from Bristletail's claw. She glances at the Loner's Barn.)
Feathercloud: Perhaps we should-?
Twistedclaw: Ask the mangy loners for shelter? I would never!
Feathercloud: I'm only trying to be helpful!
(Twistedclaw looks up at the sky. It is hard to tell if it's daylight or not. The sky is so black with clouds.)
Twistedclaw: We had better get moving.
(They set off in silence, but slowly, Twistedclaw notices that Feathercloud is limping on a back-leg. Probably courtesy of Smokeclaw. He slows to walk beside her, and even walks closer so she could lean on him if she needed too.)
Feathercloud: Thank you, Twistedclaw...For saving my life back there I mean...
(Twistedclaw grunts in reply, eyes straight ahead, trying to focus on the vengance he would unleash on RiverClan for sheltering the traitors: Toadpelt, Hawktalon, and Fireshadow. But part of him is here, part of him realizes how soft Feathercloud's fur is, and how nice her scent was even despite the earthy smell of rain.)
(The camp is bustling with new apprentices and warriors. They walk past each other, concentrating on work. There is none of the usual arguments or flirting. All are set on avenging their fallen Snakestar. Overseeing the progress on reinforcing the camp is Eclipseclaw, her cloudy eyes unreadible as she watches Reedwhisker and Dappleheart hide thorny brambles in the ground around camp. ShadowClan was well informed of this new defence and would tread carefully to avoid it, but an attacking Clan would not be prepared. Eclipseclaw marvelled at the genius of her sister. Speaking of whom, Emberwing padded towards her)
Emberwing: How goes the work?
Reedwhisker (frustrated): Prickly and bloody!
Dappleheart (tired): A request a rest. My paws sting like fury!
Eclipseclaw (sneering): More than your paws will sting if RiverClan pulls a sneak attack and thou art not prepared!
Dappleheart (growls): Well thou canst take these brambles and-!
Emberwing: Enough! Bickering aids no cat in these times. Eclipseclaw, we must speak.
(Eclipseclaw turns from the pretty she-cat burning with old rage. She and her sister pause near the leader's den.)
Emberwing: How dost out little flower in the wind blow? What lies in its petals?
Eclipseclaw (sighing): Such riddles, sister? Is there such a need?
Emberwing: Our eyes and ears in other clans are firm in the appearance of loyalty. 'Twould be even easier for one to hide amongst our shadows and give loyal appearance.
Eclipseclaw (thinking hard): The flower says the wind blows heavy. A storm approaches.
Emberwing: How soon?
Eclipseclaw: The flower knows not. But it says that the wind has been training breezes to be cutting coldly. It says that leaves have been swept into the moor, even from the edges of ThunderClan territory.
Emberwing (eyes flashing): We'll put an end to that. Excellent report.
(Spiderpaw's voice is heard outside the entrance. His fur is fluffed out in fear but his eyes are bright with anger.)
Spiderpaw: RiverClan IS ATTACKING!
(Furious yowls errupt around camp. Emberflight and Eclipseclaw surround the apprentice immediately)
Emberflight: Where?
Spiderpaw: They've flooded into Four Trees. They're right behind-!
(Yowls of attack errupt from outside the entrance. Emberflight raises her muzzle to the sky.)
Emberflight: Eclipseclaw, lead the attack! Queens, herd the kits inside, and guard the nursery!
(Eclipseclaw flicked her tail and dashed toward the entrance where two RiverClan warriors were running in, a crowd of cats a short distance behind them.)
Eclipseclaw (yowling furiously, her voice husky voice enraged): GO AROUND THEM! SEAL THE ENTRANCE!
(ShadowClan warriors pour around the two enemy warriors, slashing them as they pass, and form a strong barrier before the entrance. The combat between the two lines of warriors is fierce, blood spatters the ground and all that can be seen of individual cats is flailing limbs and gnashing teeth. Eclipseclaw deals with the two intruders, tackling the tom and choking him with a forceful paw on his throat. The she-cat circles her and leaps at her back, but Emberflight rises onto her hind legs and knocks her out of the air. The tom rolls over and on top of Eclipseclaw and the she-cat snarls as he claws her face. Flintpelt, who was fighting in the back of the line, whips around to see her. Before he can move, Eclipseclaw thrusts her right claw straight into the RiverClan warrior's throat and he sputters as dies. Eclipseclaw tosses the body off of her. The River Clan she-cat lies lifeless beside Emberflight, but a young RiverClan warrior squeezes through the line of ShadowClan cats, Pebbleheart. She flies bravely at towards the nursery, but the queens do not stand for it. Paleflower especially. With a new litter of kits to protect, she would not let any threat go unchecked! She tackles Pebbleheart and wrestles her to the ground, giving the grey warrior a good slashing. Pebbleheart may escape if she abandons her mission now, but the small grey warrior refuses to give up. She slips from under the angry queen's claws and forces her way between thee two other queens, though they claw her pelt and try to hold her down. The kits are in the corner of the nursery, frightened in mewing. The once shy warrior prowls closer, raising a claw. FOR HER Clan! She brings her claw down and moves towards another. Her pelt is matted with blood, and Pebbleheart knows she will die but...she presses on.
Lizardeye focuses his senses completely on locating the ShadowClan traitors. His cold eyes are indifferent to even the blood of his own clanmates. He picks up a scent at last! Toadpelt! Snarling, he goes around the back way, unknown to slow RiverClan. He sees the deep brown cat at last, fighting beside his beloved Fireshadow, Lizardeye circles in the shadows, his eyes glazed with icy fury. Toadpelt slashes at Whiteheart, and Lizardeye leaps onto his back from behind. He is silent as he dips his head down, clinching his teeth around the cat's vital point. Silent murder. He lifts his remarkably clean muzzle to see Brindlepelt's dark blue gaze. As always, he is unable to read her mind. What did she think of him now? Why should her seeing this bother him? He stepped off the lifeless body of Toadpelt and backed away slowly, fading into the shadows.)
(The battle ends, and ShadowClan cats gather. Most are limping, and some lay down on their bellies to rest their aching limbs. RiverClan has fled, but they are no doubt preparing their defences. They know that ShadowClan will have their revenge. Emberflight, current Deputy, leaps onto the roots of the tree that make the leader's den.)
Emberflight: Is all well?
(Wails and sobs can be heard from the nursery. All cats look their. Paleflower emerges, shaking with sobs.)
Palefower (mournful yowling): GONE! GOOOOONE! ALL ARE GONE! Every kit! Snatched from their mothers like mice stolen by night owls! ALL ARE LOST!
(The Clan bows heads in silence, respecting the pained cries from the other two queens.)
Emberflight (just above the sobs): Who is responsible for this injustice?
Paleflower (pointing with her tail): There! Dead beside the nursery! The dark grey dog! Fox-heart! She stole our kits from us.
Emberflight (dipping her head): Your kits will be avenged my Clan. Twistedstar and I will see to it. The flames of our rage shall ignite the night sky! The shadows will turn the rivers black with blood! Mark it my Clan. Mark it well.
Eclipseclaw (snarling): And I too!
(Yowls of agreement rise. Emberflight catches sight of her mentor, walking wearily amongst the crowds. He binds the serious wounds for most, but the going his slow despite his apprentice, Brightfang. Emberflight is suspicious of how Lizardeye moves, his head slightly bowed and his tail dangling limply. Was he injured also?)
(Light beams piece the hole over Moonstone. Twistedclaw's eyelids scrunch, and he jolts awake. Feathercloud awakes too, startled by the sudden scattering of pebbles.)
Feathercloud (anxious): How did it go?
(Twistedstar glares at the ground, unable to answer her)
Feathercloud: Oh...thou can'st speak of it? ?
(Silence. But then...more scattering pebbles. Feathercloud 's eyes widened. It had not been Twistedstar to awake her.)
Violetwing (echoing from the entrance of Mothermouth): COME OUT WITH SHEATHED CLAWS, ShadowClan WRETCHES!
Feathercloud (frightened): Surely they wouldn't-?!
Twistedstar (snarling): Desperate force drives them. We must leave.
Feathercloud: Face them? Surely they have brought their entire Clan!
Twistedstar (snapping): Of course not! We go this way!
(He turns and follows another tunnel. Shocked, Feathercloud follows. Echoing pawsteps can be heard distantly. WindClan has entered Mothermouth! The path is dark and the rock walls are jagged, tearing fur as the two cats whipped along the turns blindly. Twistedstar is guided only by whiskers and primitive instinct. The tunnel takes a sharp dip, like a pitfall and both ShadowClan cats barely escape injuring their legs, which would be fatal now. They fly, paws glinding swiftly over the sharp pebbles. Then...a dead end, Twistedclaw bumps his head, and Feathcloud just barely avoids doing the same. Twistedstar scratches the rock wall before him. Feathercloud glances fearfully behind them. The pawsteps grow steadily louder. Twistedstar gives up on the wall and turns to face his doom. Feathercloud presses close to him.)
Feathercloud (aside): If this be our end, the stars are truly cruel. To bring us together at last...in death.
(Violetwing's scent fills the tunnels, along with Sandtail's and Harewhisker's. More WindClan are surely following, but these cats are at the lead. Twistedstar growls and pads in front of Feathercloud protectively. Nearly accepting their fate, Feathercloud's whiskers brush an empty space in the wall beside her. She turns her head in the darkness and sticks her head inside.)
Feathercloud (hissing): Twistedcl-ah star! This way!
(Twistedstar looks as if he might stay and fight, then, reluctantly, dives after Feathercloud, they run along the secret tunnel. The WindClan patrol stops at the dead end, confused. They notice the tunnel too, but only Violetwing is small enough to follow. The small warrior crawls in after the enemy and the rest of the WindClan patrol rush back towards the entrance.
Twistedstar and Feathcloud whip along the smooth tunnel, onlly big enough for one of them at a time. The tunnel seems more direct, an upward slope. Higher, and higher until dawns light shines through. They climb out one after the other, breathing hard.)
Twistedstar (between breaths): I would be dead without thee.
Feathercloud (laughing between breaths also): Well, I told thee so. Did I not?
(pawsteps are heard from the tunnel. Twistedstar whips around and crouches before the entrance. Violetwing emerges, and he resheathes his claws. Feathercloud stares, amazed.)
Twistedstar: Thou ought have more care. I could have sliced thee.
Violetwing: I knew thou would not.
Twistedstar: Would thou mislead her comrades? Let them believe we escaped thine grasp. What of thine pride?
Violetwing: I've enough honorable deeds to my name. I need no more. And besides, to say thou art slain by me would be unbelievable. Even to Ospreyfang and Finchstep. No, I wilt tell thee when to leave.
Feathercloud (bristling): What in StarClan's name is going on here?!
Twistedstar (chuckling darkly): Violetwing is our eyes and ears in the Land of the Wind. She is working for us, under promise of high rank in exchange.
Feathercloud (disbelieving): Betray thine own Clan?!
Violetwing: ShadowClan is the stronger. Hast thou seen my ribs? I starve under Ravenstar's rule. I shall grow weighty under Twistedstar's. It is as simple as that. I go now, I fear my Clan may suspect me of treachery dare I stay.
(Violetwing leaves. Twistedstar and Feathercloud are left alone on top of Mothermouth. They lie low so the cats below do not see or scent them. Their pelts brush, and Twistedstar cannot stop thinking of what may have happened had she not been with him. As she always had been. His heart thumps. He puts it down as nerves before battle. He had a Clan to destroy.)
(Dawn in ShadowClan comes as sheets of mourning rain. Most cats are sheltered in their dens, but the unlucky few who have to patrol (which now takes twice as many cats due to the added territory) returned drenched and melancholy. The death of the kits has stricken every cat, especially Lightningclaw who has now lost her only two kits, the legacy of Snakestar. Lizardeye enters the empty clearing with a fresh stock of herbs in his mouth. He too, is drenched and oddly somber. A call sounds at the entrance, Adderpaw rushes through.)
Adderpaw: TWISTEDSTAR HAS RETURNED!
(Lizardeye can hear cats scrambling to their paws and sees them pouring out of their dens. He rushes to his own den and shoved the herbd neatly against the walls. Then he runs back out, pushing cats aside to get through. Twistedstar enters with his ears flattened and his eyes fierce, looking more like an enemy attacking than the leader of the Clan, but he is cheered on even more fiercely because of it! Feathercloud is close behind, her soft puffy fur flattened against her back and sides, though she looks happier to be home. Emberleaf makes her way to his side, welcoming him back and launching into a brief report of what had happened. Naturally, Twistedclaw looks outraged and leaps onto the roof of his den.)
Twistedstar: ShadowClan, this is true? RiverClan dare'st set paw on our grounds?!
Lightningclaw (yowling fiercely): 'Tis true. They slaughtered my kits!
Paleflower (sharply): AND all others!
(Twistedstar throws his head back and gives a chilling yowl, which is soon followed by crash of thunder and flash of lightning.)
Twistedstar: MY Clan! Do not look so low! For when we take our vengeance, there will be no RiverClan. So I swear, on my own brother's and his legacies grave!
(Lightning flashes in the dark grey sky. Yowls of agreement rise.)
(RiverClan forest is dark grey and sheets of rain pour over the backs of two cats who have found little shelter beneath the trees. Fireshadow stands to the left of Puddlepelt, and beside her is Hawktalon.)
Fireshadow (hollow voiced): And...thou'st sure?
Puddlepelt (nodding): 'Tis the only way.
Hawktalon (snapping): We know that! But will it work?!
Puddlepelt (equally sharply): Thou doubts my plan? Well, let's see the results of thine own! Oh! I forgot thou hast failed twice to kill them!
Fireshadow (flaring with anger): SILENCE thee both! I'll claw thine tongues out myself! Tell us again Puddlepelt, so the plan shall succeed!
Puddlepelt (darkly):
Gather the red berries of death,
we'll crush them into juice,
dip our claws in, soak them wet,
and put them to good use.
Hawktalon (spitting contemptously): We'll never even get close to Twistedstar!
Puddlepelt (confident): He'st too proud. He'll take a challenge if one calls it. If you fail, I shall finish him myself.
Fireshadow: Do what you like to the shadow's star...leave the Lizard to me.
All: Agreed.
(Along Thunderpath, Eclipseclaw glides stealthily in the shadows. She believes herself to be alone, but a shifting of the leaves behind her tell her otherwise. The small black she-cat whips around and crouches defensively, claws unsheathed. A large silver cat with black stripe emerges.)
Eclipseclaw (hissing): Heronpelt! How mad thou must be to follow me, knowing my furious state!
Heronpelt: I came only out of worry for thee. Thou seemed...upset, earlier.
Eclipseclaw (clouded eyes low as she mumbles): Fish-for-brains..T'would have been a more fitting name for thee....
Heronpelt (frustrated): Why must thou behave in such ill manner? Have I not done all you asked?! Have I not cared for thine sister? Raised thy kit kin properly? Served my Clan thrice over in battles, and chores? Why be thee so outraged? Why does such hatred fill thine clouded blue eyes?!
(Eclipseclaw looks away, eyes squinted but misty still. Her throat is constrained to such a point that she is hardly breathing)
Heronpelt (demanding): Speak!
Eclipseclaw (choked): I-It's-..........
Heronpelt: Speak!
Eclipseclaw: Fish-brains! If thou had any wit about him he would have realized long ago! Hatred? How could I hate thee? Caring for my sister in such a way! Serving thy Clan! Such honorable intentions, so nobel! And thou suspects my looks be of hatred? Fool!
(She walks away, staring over the hard sleek rocks of Thunderpath.)
Heronpelt (confused): So...why?
Eclipseclaw (quietly, not looking at him): I'll not say it. 'Twill do no good for any cat and only cause thee more pain.
Heronpelt (suspecting): What about thine pain? Hast thou not suffered enough, for thine sisters?
Eclipsecclaw (flattening her ears): And I shall continue to suffer for them.
(She disappears into the shadows. Heronstripe slowly makes his way back to camp, having every intention of returning faithfully to his queen.)
(At night, four days after the raid, six cats gather beneath the clear skies beneath the burnt sycamore. The moon looks ghostly white, with even a ring shining around it. The cats gathered are: Twistedstar, Lizardeye, Eclipseclaw, Emberleaf, and Brightfang. In the tabby brothers' minds and hearts, Snakestar is present as well. They plan the night away. The day of attack is set for dawn the morning after this one.)
(The sun has barely slid above the horizon, but already ShadowClan is awake and on the move. Apprentices trot back and forth, carrying supplies and relaying messages. Warriors eat what may very well be their last meal, though what they all truly hunger for is vengeance. Twistedstar sits on the gnarled roots of his tree den. Lizardeye is to his left, and Emberflight to his right. All watch in an eerie silence, prepared to answer questions or shout orders in a moment's notice. Twistedstar briefly glances at Feathercloud and meets her gaze. She is going on one of the many small patrols that Lizardeye organized. Twistedstar probably would not see her until the battle's end.
Lizardeye makes no concious effort, yet his eyes continue to land on Brindlepelt, whose fur shines even in the darkness of dawn. Near her are Lightningclaw and Lightfeather. Apparently times of trouble tend to bind kin together. As she turns to face him, his eyes lock with hers a moment. She is a mystery still, though as far as he could discern she bore no disgust or hatred towards him.
Twistedstar rises to his paws and all eyes are on the small tabby leader, whose eyes are dark but glisten as pools of venom. His claws are already unsheathed and glint, pearly white and prepared for the red blood stains. Silently, Twistedclaw flicks his tails and the battle patrols quickly scatter. After all others are out of sight, Twistedstar leads his own which consists only of Herontail, Stormclaw, Batheart, Bluethorn, Foxfur, Nightshade and Lizardeye. A mere eight warriors, himself, and no apprentice.
He moves forward as a stormcloud might move but swifter, and even more silent. Danger radiates from his every step. The rest of the patrol stays close but even their fur bristles from the murderous power that seemed to fill the very air. They cross into former ThunderClan territory, still slightly amazed that it is completely their own, and stop on the Sunning Rocks. An entire patrol of RiverClan Cats wait there, bristling and for a time the two fronts stand facing one another.
There are eight RiverClan cats as well, but their patrol includes an apprentice. One that is young and frightened, and probably arunner to send word to the RiverClan camp. Twistedclaw smirks.))
Spottedfur (hissing): GO back from whence thy came, ShadowClan wretches! RiverClan shall not surrender!
Twistedstar (smirking): What cowards stand before me! Shivering like frightened mice, after such a bold attack on our swamp. Surely these terrified kits are not the ones that descended on my camp with such ferocity? You jest! Go back to thy camp, Spottedfur, and bring back some warriors!
((The rest of his patrol snickers and calls in agreement while the RiverClan cats edge towards the bank in fury. Spottedfur holds Twistedstar's gaze. Each waiing for the exact moment of attack.))
(WARNING: CHARACTER DEATHS AND INJURY ARE ABOUT TO ENSUE! MIGHT WANT TO SKIP THE REST OF THIS SCENE!)
(It is practically invisible. The tabby's tail tip twitches. The ShadowClan patrol launches themselves into the river. None are swimmers, but it is low tide and by the sheer force of their moving paws they say a float. The RiverClan Patrol stands on the edge swiping claws furiously as the ShadowClan cats emerge. Their pelts weighed down, the ShadowClan cats tackle the RiverClan cats with intense ferocity!
Stormclaw catches Brackenpelt in a upright lock, pressing all his weight down on the warrior and grasping his scruff between his teeth. The RiverClan warrior's retaliation is to twist and force Stormclaw back, sending the pair tumbling into the water.
Naturally, Twistedstar faces against Spottedfur. The bloodthirsty warrior pauses to shake the water from, his fur, sending the water all over the place, before dodging Spottedfur's frontal strike. Snarling, the small tabby crouches low, and aims up at the black-and-white cat's chest. In a swift, powerful movement, he hooks his claws into Spottedfur's chest and pushes upwards, forcing him onto his hind legs. Releasing his grip, Twistedstar rises up on his own hind legs and slashes furiously. Spottedfur blocks as best he can with his forepaws, but on defense the battle would be lost! He manages to slip under the furious claws and headbut the tabby's belly. Sending him off balance. Spottedfur wastse no time in following Twistedstar as he rolls over and he grips the tabby's neck scruff. Dragging the smaller cat so that he is on his back, belly exposed. Still gripping Twistedstar by the neck scruff, Spottedfur raises a claw and drags it over the tabby's belly.))
Spottedfur (through the blood and fur): This is the best thou hast?!
((Furious, Twistedstar raises his right claw and slashes fiercely at Spottedfur's right eye. He releases the tabby's neck scruff in a yowl of pain. Twistedstar quickly rolls onto his belly and strikes down on Spottedfur's right eye again and again. Then he bundled his muscles together and leapt into the air, landing on the RiverClan cat's back, which Spottedfur countered easily with by rolling to the side, sending Twistedstar sprawling.
Spottedfur gets a good look at his patrol for the first time since the battle began. Most are dead. Brackenpelt and Stormclaw lay in the shallow waters...drowned. Lizardeye is standing over an unnaturally still Falconeyes, hardly an injury in sight on the RiverClan tom's body. Herontail is finishing off a very bloody and tired Stonepool. Snowfoot is struggling vainly against Nightshade's increasing furious slashes, her face is hardly recognizable. The river was red.))
Nettlepelt (gasping for air): Flee! Spottedfur go! Thou hast a family to protect. Go!
((But Spottedfur surely cannot leave his patrol to this slaughter! Admittedly, even through his one remaining eye, he can tell that the battle was lost. The best he can do is go ask for reinforcements. Which...as far as he could tell....should have been here by now. Whitepaw had fled for help when the battle had first begun...))
(Whitepaw dashes across the water surrounding the RiverClan camp, but what she finds leaves her horrified. ShadowClan cats swarmed all over. At least four patrol's worth, counting the apprentices! Whitepaw stands amazed. The dens are in shambles. Yowls and screeches fill the air. Blood stains the ground beneath her very paws, and the seven moon old cat begins to cry. She could see only a few RiverClan cats left, fighting their hardest. Even with the occasional dead ShadowClan cat on the ground, it seems nothing compared to those of the RiverClan. Clearly the attack had been unsuspected! Every cat had known that Twistedstar was coming! So why would an attack catch them so off guard?!
Whitepaw hears a shriek nearby! Tanglefang is facing off against Lightningclaw. The dreadful queen looks even uglier, and fiercer than she ever has before.)
Lightningclaw: Kit-murderers! All shall be slain by my vengeance!
Tanglefang: Thou'st failed to protect her own kin! The fault 'tis thine own! A RiverClan Queen knows better! Enough talk! Come and join thine kits!
(There is a fierce yowl from each as they leap at each other and become a tangle of fur and claws. Lightningclaw's fury matches evenly with Tanglefang's battle skills. It is a rare and entrancing sight. Tanglefang falls backwards purposely, belly exposed, and legs in the air. She forces the ShadowClan Warrior back with her hind legs, but Lightningclaw is prepared and lands on her feet just in time to lay her claw in the knotty fur at Tanglefang's throat.))
Skunktail: WHITEPAW GET BACK!
((The new young warrior drags the small apprentice out of the way of a wrestling pair of toms.))
Whitepaw (frightened): Where is Willowstar?!
(The frightened she-cat squeezes between the squirming masses. The Leader's Den was utterly empty. Willowstar was nowhere in sight. She had nearly given up hope when se finally caught a glimpse of silver fur slinking through the bushes, out of camp. Was her leader injured?! Then, she stumbled upon a frightful sight...Not Twistedstar but- )
Lizardeye: Dost thou admit defeat? Answer yes and thy death shall be swift!
Willowstar (sputtering beneath the claw on her throat): Thou hast attacked as a coward might. Creeping about in shadows and striking one from behind.
Lizardeye: It accounts for only the first life. All others of thine were lost in a battle of skill and wit. Age's decline was the true victor against thee this morning.
(Knowing that the leader was only stalling for time, for surely as soon as she loses another life her strength will return, Lizardeye clawed deeper into her neck. Whitepaw, enraged by the blatant dishonor of killing a cat in such a way, launched herself at the cold tabby's back, only to be swatted away but a small but muscular paw. She was flung so hard that she hit the tree just behind her with a painful crack of her ribs.)
Twistedstar: Heh, are all RiverClan cats as mouse-brained as this? Pitiful. And here, their great leader lies beneath the claw of not another leader, but of a Medicine Cat. Where has thine skill fled oh willowy one? Enough talk.
(Ironically, Willowstar is unable to speak with a claw in her throat)
Twistedstar: What life is she?
Lizardeye: Cannot be more than three or two. Her revival has weakened greatly over the moments. 'Twill not be long now. Dost thou desire to end her by Leader's Claw.
Twistedstar: 'Tis not worth my time. I have a murderer to find.
Hawktalon: Dost thou speak of me?
Twistedstar (growling): The monster reveals himself at last. Prepare for Death's Claws!
Fireshadow: A braggart you are indeed.
Twistedstar (chuckling darkly): Two traitors in a single swipe. I must be fortune's favorite!
Hawktalon: This fight is for us only Twistedstar!
Twistedstar (grinning madly): Two against one is fairer and thou knows 'tis true! But if thou insists!
(The tabby spoke not another word as he launched himself at Hawktalon, bowling the other cat over nearly effortlessly, but the gray tom squirmed and writhed, sending the two tumbling about the ground. Twistedclaw scratched in almost a playful matter, slicing the sides of his opponent. Hawktalon bit at the leader's throat vainly.)
(Lizardeye looked at the ginger and black warrior with his claw still embedded in the fading leader's throat. This was Toadpelt's mate. The one who convinced him to betray his kin. The she-cat's eyes shone with hatred and fury. She seemed to approach in near slow motion. Lizardeye expertly tore the vein in Willowstar's neck and lifted his blood claw from her to charge Fireshadow back. No words expressed their bitter hatred of each other, each blaming the other for Toadpelt's death. In moments they too were thrown into a sprawling brawl, though Lizardeye's movements were too fluid and controlled to be wild. With ease he began to disable the movements of her paws and legs, tearing at muscles that would make maneuvering painful.)
(As the battle raged on, Lizardeye caught sight of something strange. At edge of the small clearing in which their battle was taking place a small spot of red appeared. It looked soft and very much like mud. It could not possibly be blood. Fireshadow, realizing that Lizardeye had caught on, pulled away from him and limped quickly to the red spot, smearing her paws and claws in it. She was about to call Hawktalon to do the same, but she could only stare in horror as the ShadowClan Leader hauled himself off of the lifeless gray body.)
Fireshadow (Enraged): DEATH TO THE TWISTED STAR! THE HORROR OF ALL THE CLANS!
(she launched herself through the air at the small tabby, who, bewildered by her strange actions, rolled out of the way.)
Lizardeye (seeing that his brother does not understand): Watch for her claws brother! She is poison!
(Twistedstar glanced down at her claws. Death Berries! What a marvelous idea! But he ducked and dodged her every fierce strike with incredible caution for a cat with all his lives about him. Lizardeye suddenly felt stricken. Caution had never been a trait of his brother's. Now that he was leader, he ought to have been more reckless than ever! Fearful of its meaning, Lizardeye dashed to the red puddle of death himself and smeared and dug all four of his claws into it before charging swiftly at Fireshadow. He shot past Twistedclaw and struck her squarely in her neck....as squarely as her claw stuck into his own chest. With his last burst of energy, he stuck his claw deeper and pulled it out at last. Then he struggled to release her dead claw from his own chest.)
Lizardeye (gasping): I fear this is the end of me, dear brother. Lead well with all your life...!
Twistedclaw (laughing through the inevitable gurgle of blood): I fear 'tis the end for me too, Dear Brother.
(Lizardeye turned to look at him in horror. There was indeed a tear in his own throat, and surely the poison was well into his blood, already slowing the beat of the tabby's heart)
Lizardeye (a solemn smile): Then we have died for nothing?
Twistedclaw (coughing): Nothing? No. Emberfoot shall lead ShadowClan against WindClan when we are gone.
Lizardeye: How shall she do that when StarClan refuses to grant ShadowClan Leader's their lives? 'Tis that not the very reason thou is dying?
Twistedclaw (lying down, half-closing his eyes): 'Tis....
Lizardeye (dying more slowly): We die then...Join our brother in...(a dry chuckle)...He's not in StarClan.
Twistedclaw: Hmmm...
Lizardeye: Wherever he may be...We shalt join him....Farewell cruel forest...I've learned much from thee...
END SCENE
((Emberfoot, Eclipseclaw, Brightfur and Honeydapple stand over the fallen bodies of their two mentors. All are solemn. RiverClan has fallen, most of the Clan slain. The survivors skulk in the crowd of ShadowClan))
Honeydapple: What....will we do...?
Eclipseclaw: Finish their work of course! WindClan will be nothing now that we have trippled our size.
Emberfoot: Her meaning is what shall we do about the Clan. Hence forth they shall know that StarClan itself wages war against us. They refused noble Twistedstar his lives. They will surely deny us ours.
Eclipseclaw: They know not how Twistedstar died. We shall pretend the battle was so fierce and he was so outnumbered that all were lost.
Honeydapple (incredulous): Such deception?!
Emberfoot: 'Tis the only way.
Honeydapple (searching for aid): Brightfur?!
Brightfur: Must be done. Fear not Honeydapple, no cat shall ask you to carry such a burden of lying. Never speak of it and all will be well.
Honeydapple (doubtful): I suppose.
((Puddlepelt hides in the dead of night, sheltered by reeds beside the two-leg bridge. She has been there for two full nights. Beside her is Skunktail, now motherless and without siblings. Rainfur, Otterfoot, and Rabbittail had gone ahead.))
Skunktail (soft but bitter): Two nights gone and no scent of him, Puddlepelt. The water's have claimed him.
Puddlepelt (fearful whisper): Never! He swore his return! He gave me his word.
skunktail (irritated): Words don't hold off death, Puddlepelt.
(The gray and white she-cat makes no reply)
Tom: Amazing it is that thou hast not been discovered. Thine tongues wag like dog tails.
(Puddlepelt's eyes light up as her beloved rises out of the water like a ghost beneath the moon. She runs out and brushes his wet fur, licks his face.)
Spottedfur: Shush, enough, 'tis time to go.
Skunktail (snorting): Why such a hurry? Thou took such time to arrive! Let us go, Ravenstar awaits the last RiverClan refugees.
Puddlepelt (brokenly): Oh our home...I can hardly bear to leave it.
(The three exeunt)
(Emberflight sits on the gnarled roots of the leader's den. Beneath her are Eclipseclaw (rightside), Honeydapple (Leftside), Brightfur (Middle). It has been days since the loss of the two brothers, but ShadowClan is stable once more. Even the ThunderClan traitors have grown to feel attached to the four she-cats before them. Even former RiverClan cats are less hateful to them than they were to Twistedstar and his brothers.)
EmberSTAR: Our final endeavor begins in a fortnight. The Battle in which the Mighty Clan of Wind Shall fall! The Clan shall be well fed, and sheltered. Although we outnumber WindClan by many, we cannot underestimate their strengths. Take care of thine Clanmates, thou may not see some of them again. But know this! That Snakestar's great vision shall be manifested at last! The Clans shall be one! There will be no more borders, no more forbidden relationships, and no reason to hate each other. This is a war to bring about the Ultimate Peace. Paradise in the forest. So rest well my Clan. Our final battle begins.
Twistedstar's Reign
Prologue
Eclipseclaw: And so it came to pass that Snakestar's time had ended. One might think that such a crushing blow would cripple ShadowClan, but that one has never met the likes of Twistedclaw. A fierce warrior! He is, fearless, mercilesss and- Well, let me put it this way. He was my mentor. His leadership led ShadowClan like a fierce storm over the forestland. His loss was an even greater tragedy. And now I continue my dark tale. The Rise and Fall of Three of the greatest cats ever known to our Great Clan!
ACT 1 SCENE ONE
(Lightning flashes overhead and rain pours down as though a waterfall was overhead rather than the massive black clouds. An ominous wind blew along the border between Wind and Shadow. Standing on the far edge of the more were three figures of the utmost importance to the events ahead. Lizardeye, Feathercloud, and Twistedclaw. More Thunder)
Lizardeye (yelling over the thunder and wind): AND REMEMBER TO REMAIN OUT OF WINDCLAN'S EYE! THE WIND MAY BE BOUND BY THE WARRIOR CODE TO NOT CAUSE YOU HARM, BUT THEY ARE HARDLY LIKELY TO FOLLOW IT IN THEIR ENRAGED AND STARVING STATE!
(Twistedclaw nodded. He would rather not go, that much was obvious, but Lizardeye had so insisted that this took priority over vengeance. His eyes gleaming with fierceness, he turned to Feathercloud. The thunder and wind died down momentarily.)
Twistedclaw: 'Tis time for thee to return to camp.
Feathercloud (shaking her head): Thou Cans't seriously expect me to remain there when danger lies so near thee.
Twistedclaw (snarling a bit): A good warrior thou may be, but a good ear, no. Look 't me. I am thine leader, would thou not follow mine orders?
Feathercloud: I would follow thee to the death, but such an order from my leader will surely lead him to death, therefore I shalt follow happily.
Twistedclaw (a small smirk): Thou art too witty. (turns to Liazrdeye): Can thou spares't her?
Lizardeye nods.
Twistedclaw: Then she shalt come. Brother, take care. I trust Embereye has everything in order until my return.
(The two remaining brothers touch foreheads, silently remembering the third. Then they went their separate ways. Feathercloud and Twistedclaw padding in the open moor, unsheltered from the pelting rain and roaring wind. They pad in silence for a long while, side by side, though Twistedclaw was two pawsteps ahead and glaring straight forward.)
Feathercloud (quietly): I am sorry, for Snakestar, I mean.
(Twistedclaw continues to glare in silence. His brother had not been dead but a single night, and he had not spoken of it since the vigil.)
Feathercloud (having sensed his guilt): 'Twas not your fault.
Twistedclaw (growling): Dost thou know nothing?! 'Twas no cat's fault but mine. I am more guilty than even the traitor Icepelt! I might has well have cut my brother down myself!
Feathercloud (shocked by the outburst): That's not true, you would have defended him-
Twistedclaw: Would have! But I was not there! I swore to protect him!
Feathercloud: But...you couldn't have known...
Twistedclaw (growling): I should have seen it! What business is it of yours anyway?! I don't need the pity of my Clan, I need their obedience!
(Twistedclaw whips around and pads away. Feathercloud glares after him for him for a moment, then continues to follow, further behind in silence.)
(End Scene 1)
ACT 1 SCENE TWO
(The camp is blackened, morbid for their proud leader's death. The kits do not play. The queens are silent. The elders do not leave their den. The warriors, even under Emberflight's commands, are slow to their duties. Lizardeye returns, eyes cold and unmoved as ever. Eclipseclaw pads towards the Medicine Cat, greeting him warmly for she knew his pains.)
Lizardeye (coldly): I've some business to attend. Should Emberflight need me, tell her I'll be but a moment.
(He turns and disappears into the leader's den. Certain queens notice and turn their heads in anticipation. An arguement can be heard through the rain and after a long while...Lightningclaw stalks out angrily, carrying her kits roughly by the scruffs of their necks. The queens back away quickly as they enter the nursery. No more is said. Lizardeye disappears into the Medicine Cat Den, the deed is done.)
ACT 1 SCENE THREE
(Out on the moor, unsheltered from the pelting rain and roaring winds, the two ShadowClan cats bravely make their way. Four Shadow-like figures dot the grey plains ahead, nearly invisible amongst the striking silver rain drops.)
Feathercloud (calling over the rain): Twistedclaw, the danger approaches!
Twistedclaw (glancing in the direction of the coming patrol): This way!
(He ducks into one of the very fer dips in the moorland. He, being of less than average size, hides in the tall dry grass. And Feathercloud, being of an even smaller kind, disappears completely. Enter a rather rough looking patrol, far thinner than normal, but at least not all of their ribs show.)
Hawkflight: Thoust certain of thine eyes?
Doveclaw (hissing): Thou dares't question my senses? I've ten times more than thee these days.
Hawkflight: And less wit. If they were here, they would hear us.
Doveclaw: Let them hear and flee! We shan't hide from them! What Clan Cats we are, to fear on our own territory! Death to Shadow-!
(Twistedclaw leaps out of the tall grasses, a flash of gleaming claws in the bright white lightning. Hawkflight whips around, but the two cats have already vanished in the grass. Hissing can be heard mingled with the pouring of rain. A flash of lightning reveals Feathercloud's eyes amongst the grass, and Hawkflight pounces at her, she dives to the right and they two disappear into the grass.)
Smokestorm (bewildered and desparately searching the grass): Doveclaw! Hawkflight! Come Bristletail, stay near!
Bristletail (fierce): Cowards! I thinks't they be of Shadow!
(An eery silence falls upon the moor. Nothing can be heard but the pouring rain. Both young warriors were soaked to their very bones and the chilling wind was merciless. Neither dare to speak a word, but it doesn't matter. Feathercloud leaps for Bristletail's throat. The young warrior is brought down but claws merciliessly at the tiny she-cat. Smokestorm bites at Feathercloud's tail, but is quickly dragged off by Twistedclaw, who wastes no time delivering a silent, killing, bite. He rushes to aid Feathercloud, who has gone limp. Bristletail puts up more of a struggle, their battle lasting for longer than Twistedclaw had hoped for. Bristletail, being the larger cat, manages to knock Twistedclaw onto his side.)
Bristletail (growling and raising his claw to give a death blow): This is your end, Twistedclaw!
(Feathercloud leaps out of the grass and bites deep and hard into Bristletail's throat. He writhes and drops to the ground to shake her off, but she holds on fiercely, using her claws to aid her until the brave WindClan Warrior falls at last.)
Twistedclaw (back on his paws): Feathercloud? Where art thou? Feathercloud!
Feathercloud (emerging from the grass, limping and bleeding): Here...Twistedclaw...I'm here.
Twistedclaw (rushing to her side, though admittedly, he looked no better): We must go nowl. Others will come looking. This way!
(Both flee quickly, despite limping and pain, towards Mothermouth)
ACT 1 SCENE FOUR
(Lizardeye moves quickly around the Medicine Cat Den, keeping note of the supplies. A lot had been used in the Battle with ThunderClan and the supplies was nearly normal again. They would need a true surplus to face RiverClan. Enter Brindlepelt.)
Brindlepelt (cautiously): Lizardeye, A thorn has thrusted into Snowfeather's paw.
Lizardeye (continuing his work): I'll see to 't once I finish.
Brindlepelt (quietly, looking at the stacks of herbs): Is it not as important...
Lizardeye: No 'Tis not.
Brindlepelt: What an interesting Medicine Cat thou makest.
Lizardeye: What a strange warrior, that stands and talks, and stares, but does not return to her nobel duty of Clan care and defense.
Brindlepelt (annoyed): I'll forgive that...as you mourn your brother.
Lizardeye: I mourn him not.
Brindlepelt (shaking her head pitying): Thou liest.
Lizardeye (eyeing her with a icy-fire): I. Mourn. Him. Naught.
Brindlepelt (bristling): Why deny something so natural?
Lizardeye: Why insist on what is not there? I tell you, I mourn him not. He made the elementary mistake of dropping his guard. He paid the price of it, and now Twistedclaw suffers the burden. Mourn my mouse-brained brother, never.
Brindlepelt (horrified): I know your pain! Why do you lie so?! You wrong your brother in his grave! I know your grief already, so take back all thoust said!
(Thunder crashes)
Lizardeye (growing angered): Know my grief? KNOW MY GRIEF?! No cat can ever know my grief! My grief would storm the skies and make black the sun! My grief would freeze the prey in solid ice for eternity! My grief would flood rivers, enrage the winds, spark fires, and deafen Thunder itself! Know my grief how dare you!
Brindlepelt (furious): Thou hast lost one single littermate and thou wails like a kit! What knowst thee of a mother's grief?
Lizardeye: Whos't liar now?! Thou art not a mother!
Brindlepelt (shocked and deeply wounded): No I am not...
(Thunder echoes. She disappears from the Medicine Cat Den, into the pouring rain. Lizardeye watches her go, not seeing the truth.)
ACT 1 SCENE FIVE
(Thunder flashes. Twistedclaw and Feathercloud have paused somewhere around the Loner's Barn, constantly watching their backs as they clean their wounds. Feathercloud licks one of the several nasty clawmarks on his shoulders, all from attempts to bite his neck.)
Feathercloud (watching the steady stream of blood)): Should we turn back?
Twistedclaw: And make the entire journey pointless? No. How badly hast thou been injured.
Feathercloud (quietly): 'Tis not my injuries I fear for...
(Feathercloud herself bears a gash on her chest from Bristletail's claw. She glances at the Loner's Barn.)
Feathercloud: Perhaps we should-?
Twistedclaw: Ask the mangy loners for shelter? I would never!
Feathercloud: I'm only trying to be helpful!
(Twistedclaw looks up at the sky. It is hard to tell if it's daylight or not. The sky is so black with clouds.)
Twistedclaw: We had better get moving.
(They set off in silence, but slowly, Twistedclaw notices that Feathercloud is limping on a back-leg. Probably courtesy of Smokeclaw. He slows to walk beside her, and even walks closer so she could lean on him if she needed too.)
Feathercloud: Thank you, Twistedclaw...For saving my life back there I mean...
(Twistedclaw grunts in reply, eyes straight ahead, trying to focus on the vengance he would unleash on RiverClan for sheltering the traitors: Toadpelt, Hawktalon, and Fireshadow. But part of him is here, part of him realizes how soft Feathercloud's fur is, and how nice her scent was even despite the earthy smell of rain.)
ACT 2 SCENE ONE
(The camp is bustling with new apprentices and warriors. They walk past each other, concentrating on work. There is none of the usual arguments or flirting. All are set on avenging their fallen Snakestar. Overseeing the progress on reinforcing the camp is Eclipseclaw, her cloudy eyes unreadible as she watches Reedwhisker and Dappleheart hide thorny brambles in the ground around camp. ShadowClan was well informed of this new defence and would tread carefully to avoid it, but an attacking Clan would not be prepared. Eclipseclaw marvelled at the genius of her sister. Speaking of whom, Emberwing padded towards her)
Emberwing: How goes the work?
Reedwhisker (frustrated): Prickly and bloody!
Dappleheart (tired): A request a rest. My paws sting like fury!
Eclipseclaw (sneering): More than your paws will sting if RiverClan pulls a sneak attack and thou art not prepared!
Dappleheart (growls): Well thou canst take these brambles and-!
Emberwing: Enough! Bickering aids no cat in these times. Eclipseclaw, we must speak.
(Eclipseclaw turns from the pretty she-cat burning with old rage. She and her sister pause near the leader's den.)
Emberwing: How dost out little flower in the wind blow? What lies in its petals?
Eclipseclaw (sighing): Such riddles, sister? Is there such a need?
Emberwing: Our eyes and ears in other clans are firm in the appearance of loyalty. 'Twould be even easier for one to hide amongst our shadows and give loyal appearance.
Eclipseclaw (thinking hard): The flower says the wind blows heavy. A storm approaches.
Emberwing: How soon?
Eclipseclaw: The flower knows not. But it says that the wind has been training breezes to be cutting coldly. It says that leaves have been swept into the moor, even from the edges of ThunderClan territory.
Emberwing (eyes flashing): We'll put an end to that. Excellent report.
(Spiderpaw's voice is heard outside the entrance. His fur is fluffed out in fear but his eyes are bright with anger.)
Spiderpaw: RiverClan IS ATTACKING!
(Furious yowls errupt around camp. Emberflight and Eclipseclaw surround the apprentice immediately)
Emberflight: Where?
Spiderpaw: They've flooded into Four Trees. They're right behind-!
(Yowls of attack errupt from outside the entrance. Emberflight raises her muzzle to the sky.)
Emberflight: Eclipseclaw, lead the attack! Queens, herd the kits inside, and guard the nursery!
(Eclipseclaw flicked her tail and dashed toward the entrance where two RiverClan warriors were running in, a crowd of cats a short distance behind them.)
Eclipseclaw (yowling furiously, her voice husky voice enraged): GO AROUND THEM! SEAL THE ENTRANCE!
(ShadowClan warriors pour around the two enemy warriors, slashing them as they pass, and form a strong barrier before the entrance. The combat between the two lines of warriors is fierce, blood spatters the ground and all that can be seen of individual cats is flailing limbs and gnashing teeth. Eclipseclaw deals with the two intruders, tackling the tom and choking him with a forceful paw on his throat. The she-cat circles her and leaps at her back, but Emberflight rises onto her hind legs and knocks her out of the air. The tom rolls over and on top of Eclipseclaw and the she-cat snarls as he claws her face. Flintpelt, who was fighting in the back of the line, whips around to see her. Before he can move, Eclipseclaw thrusts her right claw straight into the RiverClan warrior's throat and he sputters as dies. Eclipseclaw tosses the body off of her. The River Clan she-cat lies lifeless beside Emberflight, but a young RiverClan warrior squeezes through the line of ShadowClan cats, Pebbleheart. She flies bravely at towards the nursery, but the queens do not stand for it. Paleflower especially. With a new litter of kits to protect, she would not let any threat go unchecked! She tackles Pebbleheart and wrestles her to the ground, giving the grey warrior a good slashing. Pebbleheart may escape if she abandons her mission now, but the small grey warrior refuses to give up. She slips from under the angry queen's claws and forces her way between thee two other queens, though they claw her pelt and try to hold her down. The kits are in the corner of the nursery, frightened in mewing. The once shy warrior prowls closer, raising a claw. FOR HER Clan! She brings her claw down and moves towards another. Her pelt is matted with blood, and Pebbleheart knows she will die but...she presses on.
Lizardeye focuses his senses completely on locating the ShadowClan traitors. His cold eyes are indifferent to even the blood of his own clanmates. He picks up a scent at last! Toadpelt! Snarling, he goes around the back way, unknown to slow RiverClan. He sees the deep brown cat at last, fighting beside his beloved Fireshadow, Lizardeye circles in the shadows, his eyes glazed with icy fury. Toadpelt slashes at Whiteheart, and Lizardeye leaps onto his back from behind. He is silent as he dips his head down, clinching his teeth around the cat's vital point. Silent murder. He lifts his remarkably clean muzzle to see Brindlepelt's dark blue gaze. As always, he is unable to read her mind. What did she think of him now? Why should her seeing this bother him? He stepped off the lifeless body of Toadpelt and backed away slowly, fading into the shadows.)
(The battle ends, and ShadowClan cats gather. Most are limping, and some lay down on their bellies to rest their aching limbs. RiverClan has fled, but they are no doubt preparing their defences. They know that ShadowClan will have their revenge. Emberflight, current Deputy, leaps onto the roots of the tree that make the leader's den.)
Emberflight: Is all well?
(Wails and sobs can be heard from the nursery. All cats look their. Paleflower emerges, shaking with sobs.)
Palefower (mournful yowling): GONE! GOOOOONE! ALL ARE GONE! Every kit! Snatched from their mothers like mice stolen by night owls! ALL ARE LOST!
(The Clan bows heads in silence, respecting the pained cries from the other two queens.)
Emberflight (just above the sobs): Who is responsible for this injustice?
Paleflower (pointing with her tail): There! Dead beside the nursery! The dark grey dog! Fox-heart! She stole our kits from us.
Emberflight (dipping her head): Your kits will be avenged my Clan. Twistedstar and I will see to it. The flames of our rage shall ignite the night sky! The shadows will turn the rivers black with blood! Mark it my Clan. Mark it well.
Eclipseclaw (snarling): And I too!
(Yowls of agreement rise. Emberflight catches sight of her mentor, walking wearily amongst the crowds. He binds the serious wounds for most, but the going his slow despite his apprentice, Brightfang. Emberflight is suspicious of how Lizardeye moves, his head slightly bowed and his tail dangling limply. Was he injured also?)
ACT 2 SCENE TWO
(Light beams piece the hole over Moonstone. Twistedclaw's eyelids scrunch, and he jolts awake. Feathercloud awakes too, startled by the sudden scattering of pebbles.)
Feathercloud (anxious): How did it go?
(Twistedstar glares at the ground, unable to answer her)
Feathercloud: Oh...thou can'st speak of it? ?
(Silence. But then...more scattering pebbles. Feathercloud 's eyes widened. It had not been Twistedstar to awake her.)
Violetwing (echoing from the entrance of Mothermouth): COME OUT WITH SHEATHED CLAWS, ShadowClan WRETCHES!
Feathercloud (frightened): Surely they wouldn't-?!
Twistedstar (snarling): Desperate force drives them. We must leave.
Feathercloud: Face them? Surely they have brought their entire Clan!
Twistedstar (snapping): Of course not! We go this way!
(He turns and follows another tunnel. Shocked, Feathercloud follows. Echoing pawsteps can be heard distantly. WindClan has entered Mothermouth! The path is dark and the rock walls are jagged, tearing fur as the two cats whipped along the turns blindly. Twistedstar is guided only by whiskers and primitive instinct. The tunnel takes a sharp dip, like a pitfall and both ShadowClan cats barely escape injuring their legs, which would be fatal now. They fly, paws glinding swiftly over the sharp pebbles. Then...a dead end, Twistedclaw bumps his head, and Feathcloud just barely avoids doing the same. Twistedstar scratches the rock wall before him. Feathercloud glances fearfully behind them. The pawsteps grow steadily louder. Twistedstar gives up on the wall and turns to face his doom. Feathercloud presses close to him.)
Feathercloud (aside): If this be our end, the stars are truly cruel. To bring us together at last...in death.
(Violetwing's scent fills the tunnels, along with Sandtail's and Harewhisker's. More WindClan are surely following, but these cats are at the lead. Twistedstar growls and pads in front of Feathercloud protectively. Nearly accepting their fate, Feathercloud's whiskers brush an empty space in the wall beside her. She turns her head in the darkness and sticks her head inside.)
Feathercloud (hissing): Twistedcl-ah star! This way!
(Twistedstar looks as if he might stay and fight, then, reluctantly, dives after Feathercloud, they run along the secret tunnel. The WindClan patrol stops at the dead end, confused. They notice the tunnel too, but only Violetwing is small enough to follow. The small warrior crawls in after the enemy and the rest of the WindClan patrol rush back towards the entrance.
Twistedstar and Feathcloud whip along the smooth tunnel, onlly big enough for one of them at a time. The tunnel seems more direct, an upward slope. Higher, and higher until dawns light shines through. They climb out one after the other, breathing hard.)
Twistedstar (between breaths): I would be dead without thee.
Feathercloud (laughing between breaths also): Well, I told thee so. Did I not?
(pawsteps are heard from the tunnel. Twistedstar whips around and crouches before the entrance. Violetwing emerges, and he resheathes his claws. Feathercloud stares, amazed.)
Twistedstar: Thou ought have more care. I could have sliced thee.
Violetwing: I knew thou would not.
Twistedstar: Would thou mislead her comrades? Let them believe we escaped thine grasp. What of thine pride?
Violetwing: I've enough honorable deeds to my name. I need no more. And besides, to say thou art slain by me would be unbelievable. Even to Ospreyfang and Finchstep. No, I wilt tell thee when to leave.
Feathercloud (bristling): What in StarClan's name is going on here?!
Twistedstar (chuckling darkly): Violetwing is our eyes and ears in the Land of the Wind. She is working for us, under promise of high rank in exchange.
Feathercloud (disbelieving): Betray thine own Clan?!
Violetwing: ShadowClan is the stronger. Hast thou seen my ribs? I starve under Ravenstar's rule. I shall grow weighty under Twistedstar's. It is as simple as that. I go now, I fear my Clan may suspect me of treachery dare I stay.
(Violetwing leaves. Twistedstar and Feathercloud are left alone on top of Mothermouth. They lie low so the cats below do not see or scent them. Their pelts brush, and Twistedstar cannot stop thinking of what may have happened had she not been with him. As she always had been. His heart thumps. He puts it down as nerves before battle. He had a Clan to destroy.)
ACT 3 SCENE ONE
(Dawn in ShadowClan comes as sheets of mourning rain. Most cats are sheltered in their dens, but the unlucky few who have to patrol (which now takes twice as many cats due to the added territory) returned drenched and melancholy. The death of the kits has stricken every cat, especially Lightningclaw who has now lost her only two kits, the legacy of Snakestar. Lizardeye enters the empty clearing with a fresh stock of herbs in his mouth. He too, is drenched and oddly somber. A call sounds at the entrance, Adderpaw rushes through.)
Adderpaw: TWISTEDSTAR HAS RETURNED!
(Lizardeye can hear cats scrambling to their paws and sees them pouring out of their dens. He rushes to his own den and shoved the herbd neatly against the walls. Then he runs back out, pushing cats aside to get through. Twistedstar enters with his ears flattened and his eyes fierce, looking more like an enemy attacking than the leader of the Clan, but he is cheered on even more fiercely because of it! Feathercloud is close behind, her soft puffy fur flattened against her back and sides, though she looks happier to be home. Emberleaf makes her way to his side, welcoming him back and launching into a brief report of what had happened. Naturally, Twistedclaw looks outraged and leaps onto the roof of his den.)
Twistedstar: ShadowClan, this is true? RiverClan dare'st set paw on our grounds?!
Lightningclaw (yowling fiercely): 'Tis true. They slaughtered my kits!
Paleflower (sharply): AND all others!
(Twistedstar throws his head back and gives a chilling yowl, which is soon followed by crash of thunder and flash of lightning.)
Twistedstar: MY Clan! Do not look so low! For when we take our vengeance, there will be no RiverClan. So I swear, on my own brother's and his legacies grave!
(Lightning flashes in the dark grey sky. Yowls of agreement rise.)
ACT 3 SCENE TWO
(RiverClan forest is dark grey and sheets of rain pour over the backs of two cats who have found little shelter beneath the trees. Fireshadow stands to the left of Puddlepelt, and beside her is Hawktalon.)
Fireshadow (hollow voiced): And...thou'st sure?
Puddlepelt (nodding): 'Tis the only way.
Hawktalon (snapping): We know that! But will it work?!
Puddlepelt (equally sharply): Thou doubts my plan? Well, let's see the results of thine own! Oh! I forgot thou hast failed twice to kill them!
Fireshadow (flaring with anger): SILENCE thee both! I'll claw thine tongues out myself! Tell us again Puddlepelt, so the plan shall succeed!
Puddlepelt (darkly):
Gather the red berries of death,
we'll crush them into juice,
dip our claws in, soak them wet,
and put them to good use.
Hawktalon (spitting contemptously): We'll never even get close to Twistedstar!
Puddlepelt (confident): He'st too proud. He'll take a challenge if one calls it. If you fail, I shall finish him myself.
Fireshadow: Do what you like to the shadow's star...leave the Lizard to me.
All: Agreed.
ACT 3 SCENE THREE
(Along Thunderpath, Eclipseclaw glides stealthily in the shadows. She believes herself to be alone, but a shifting of the leaves behind her tell her otherwise. The small black she-cat whips around and crouches defensively, claws unsheathed. A large silver cat with black stripe emerges.)
Eclipseclaw (hissing): Heronpelt! How mad thou must be to follow me, knowing my furious state!
Heronpelt: I came only out of worry for thee. Thou seemed...upset, earlier.
Eclipseclaw (clouded eyes low as she mumbles): Fish-for-brains..T'would have been a more fitting name for thee....
Heronpelt (frustrated): Why must thou behave in such ill manner? Have I not done all you asked?! Have I not cared for thine sister? Raised thy kit kin properly? Served my Clan thrice over in battles, and chores? Why be thee so outraged? Why does such hatred fill thine clouded blue eyes?!
(Eclipseclaw looks away, eyes squinted but misty still. Her throat is constrained to such a point that she is hardly breathing)
Heronpelt (demanding): Speak!
Eclipseclaw (choked): I-It's-..........
Heronpelt: Speak!
Eclipseclaw: Fish-brains! If thou had any wit about him he would have realized long ago! Hatred? How could I hate thee? Caring for my sister in such a way! Serving thy Clan! Such honorable intentions, so nobel! And thou suspects my looks be of hatred? Fool!
(She walks away, staring over the hard sleek rocks of Thunderpath.)
Heronpelt (confused): So...why?
Eclipseclaw (quietly, not looking at him): I'll not say it. 'Twill do no good for any cat and only cause thee more pain.
Heronpelt (suspecting): What about thine pain? Hast thou not suffered enough, for thine sisters?
Eclipsecclaw (flattening her ears): And I shall continue to suffer for them.
(She disappears into the shadows. Heronstripe slowly makes his way back to camp, having every intention of returning faithfully to his queen.)
ACT 3 SCENE FOUR
(At night, four days after the raid, six cats gather beneath the clear skies beneath the burnt sycamore. The moon looks ghostly white, with even a ring shining around it. The cats gathered are: Twistedstar, Lizardeye, Eclipseclaw, Emberleaf, and Brightfang. In the tabby brothers' minds and hearts, Snakestar is present as well. They plan the night away. The day of attack is set for dawn the morning after this one.)
ACT 3 SCENE FIVE
(The sun has barely slid above the horizon, but already ShadowClan is awake and on the move. Apprentices trot back and forth, carrying supplies and relaying messages. Warriors eat what may very well be their last meal, though what they all truly hunger for is vengeance. Twistedstar sits on the gnarled roots of his tree den. Lizardeye is to his left, and Emberflight to his right. All watch in an eerie silence, prepared to answer questions or shout orders in a moment's notice. Twistedstar briefly glances at Feathercloud and meets her gaze. She is going on one of the many small patrols that Lizardeye organized. Twistedstar probably would not see her until the battle's end.
Lizardeye makes no concious effort, yet his eyes continue to land on Brindlepelt, whose fur shines even in the darkness of dawn. Near her are Lightningclaw and Lightfeather. Apparently times of trouble tend to bind kin together. As she turns to face him, his eyes lock with hers a moment. She is a mystery still, though as far as he could discern she bore no disgust or hatred towards him.
Twistedstar rises to his paws and all eyes are on the small tabby leader, whose eyes are dark but glisten as pools of venom. His claws are already unsheathed and glint, pearly white and prepared for the red blood stains. Silently, Twistedclaw flicks his tails and the battle patrols quickly scatter. After all others are out of sight, Twistedstar leads his own which consists only of Herontail, Stormclaw, Batheart, Bluethorn, Foxfur, Nightshade and Lizardeye. A mere eight warriors, himself, and no apprentice.
He moves forward as a stormcloud might move but swifter, and even more silent. Danger radiates from his every step. The rest of the patrol stays close but even their fur bristles from the murderous power that seemed to fill the very air. They cross into former ThunderClan territory, still slightly amazed that it is completely their own, and stop on the Sunning Rocks. An entire patrol of RiverClan Cats wait there, bristling and for a time the two fronts stand facing one another.
There are eight RiverClan cats as well, but their patrol includes an apprentice. One that is young and frightened, and probably arunner to send word to the RiverClan camp. Twistedclaw smirks.))
Spottedfur (hissing): GO back from whence thy came, ShadowClan wretches! RiverClan shall not surrender!
Twistedstar (smirking): What cowards stand before me! Shivering like frightened mice, after such a bold attack on our swamp. Surely these terrified kits are not the ones that descended on my camp with such ferocity? You jest! Go back to thy camp, Spottedfur, and bring back some warriors!
((The rest of his patrol snickers and calls in agreement while the RiverClan cats edge towards the bank in fury. Spottedfur holds Twistedstar's gaze. Each waiing for the exact moment of attack.))
(WARNING: CHARACTER DEATHS AND INJURY ARE ABOUT TO ENSUE! MIGHT WANT TO SKIP THE REST OF THIS SCENE!)
(It is practically invisible. The tabby's tail tip twitches. The ShadowClan patrol launches themselves into the river. None are swimmers, but it is low tide and by the sheer force of their moving paws they say a float. The RiverClan Patrol stands on the edge swiping claws furiously as the ShadowClan cats emerge. Their pelts weighed down, the ShadowClan cats tackle the RiverClan cats with intense ferocity!
Stormclaw catches Brackenpelt in a upright lock, pressing all his weight down on the warrior and grasping his scruff between his teeth. The RiverClan warrior's retaliation is to twist and force Stormclaw back, sending the pair tumbling into the water.
Naturally, Twistedstar faces against Spottedfur. The bloodthirsty warrior pauses to shake the water from, his fur, sending the water all over the place, before dodging Spottedfur's frontal strike. Snarling, the small tabby crouches low, and aims up at the black-and-white cat's chest. In a swift, powerful movement, he hooks his claws into Spottedfur's chest and pushes upwards, forcing him onto his hind legs. Releasing his grip, Twistedstar rises up on his own hind legs and slashes furiously. Spottedfur blocks as best he can with his forepaws, but on defense the battle would be lost! He manages to slip under the furious claws and headbut the tabby's belly. Sending him off balance. Spottedfur wastse no time in following Twistedstar as he rolls over and he grips the tabby's neck scruff. Dragging the smaller cat so that he is on his back, belly exposed. Still gripping Twistedstar by the neck scruff, Spottedfur raises a claw and drags it over the tabby's belly.))
Spottedfur (through the blood and fur): This is the best thou hast?!
((Furious, Twistedstar raises his right claw and slashes fiercely at Spottedfur's right eye. He releases the tabby's neck scruff in a yowl of pain. Twistedstar quickly rolls onto his belly and strikes down on Spottedfur's right eye again and again. Then he bundled his muscles together and leapt into the air, landing on the RiverClan cat's back, which Spottedfur countered easily with by rolling to the side, sending Twistedstar sprawling.
Spottedfur gets a good look at his patrol for the first time since the battle began. Most are dead. Brackenpelt and Stormclaw lay in the shallow waters...drowned. Lizardeye is standing over an unnaturally still Falconeyes, hardly an injury in sight on the RiverClan tom's body. Herontail is finishing off a very bloody and tired Stonepool. Snowfoot is struggling vainly against Nightshade's increasing furious slashes, her face is hardly recognizable. The river was red.))
Nettlepelt (gasping for air): Flee! Spottedfur go! Thou hast a family to protect. Go!
((But Spottedfur surely cannot leave his patrol to this slaughter! Admittedly, even through his one remaining eye, he can tell that the battle was lost. The best he can do is go ask for reinforcements. Which...as far as he could tell....should have been here by now. Whitepaw had fled for help when the battle had first begun...))
ACT 4 SCENE ONE
(Whitepaw dashes across the water surrounding the RiverClan camp, but what she finds leaves her horrified. ShadowClan cats swarmed all over. At least four patrol's worth, counting the apprentices! Whitepaw stands amazed. The dens are in shambles. Yowls and screeches fill the air. Blood stains the ground beneath her very paws, and the seven moon old cat begins to cry. She could see only a few RiverClan cats left, fighting their hardest. Even with the occasional dead ShadowClan cat on the ground, it seems nothing compared to those of the RiverClan. Clearly the attack had been unsuspected! Every cat had known that Twistedstar was coming! So why would an attack catch them so off guard?!
Whitepaw hears a shriek nearby! Tanglefang is facing off against Lightningclaw. The dreadful queen looks even uglier, and fiercer than she ever has before.)
Lightningclaw: Kit-murderers! All shall be slain by my vengeance!
Tanglefang: Thou'st failed to protect her own kin! The fault 'tis thine own! A RiverClan Queen knows better! Enough talk! Come and join thine kits!
(There is a fierce yowl from each as they leap at each other and become a tangle of fur and claws. Lightningclaw's fury matches evenly with Tanglefang's battle skills. It is a rare and entrancing sight. Tanglefang falls backwards purposely, belly exposed, and legs in the air. She forces the ShadowClan Warrior back with her hind legs, but Lightningclaw is prepared and lands on her feet just in time to lay her claw in the knotty fur at Tanglefang's throat.))
Skunktail: WHITEPAW GET BACK!
((The new young warrior drags the small apprentice out of the way of a wrestling pair of toms.))
Whitepaw (frightened): Where is Willowstar?!
(The frightened she-cat squeezes between the squirming masses. The Leader's Den was utterly empty. Willowstar was nowhere in sight. She had nearly given up hope when se finally caught a glimpse of silver fur slinking through the bushes, out of camp. Was her leader injured?! Then, she stumbled upon a frightful sight...Not Twistedstar but- )
ACT 4 SCENE TWO
Lizardeye: Dost thou admit defeat? Answer yes and thy death shall be swift!
Willowstar (sputtering beneath the claw on her throat): Thou hast attacked as a coward might. Creeping about in shadows and striking one from behind.
Lizardeye: It accounts for only the first life. All others of thine were lost in a battle of skill and wit. Age's decline was the true victor against thee this morning.
(Knowing that the leader was only stalling for time, for surely as soon as she loses another life her strength will return, Lizardeye clawed deeper into her neck. Whitepaw, enraged by the blatant dishonor of killing a cat in such a way, launched herself at the cold tabby's back, only to be swatted away but a small but muscular paw. She was flung so hard that she hit the tree just behind her with a painful crack of her ribs.)
Twistedstar: Heh, are all RiverClan cats as mouse-brained as this? Pitiful. And here, their great leader lies beneath the claw of not another leader, but of a Medicine Cat. Where has thine skill fled oh willowy one? Enough talk.
(Ironically, Willowstar is unable to speak with a claw in her throat)
Twistedstar: What life is she?
Lizardeye: Cannot be more than three or two. Her revival has weakened greatly over the moments. 'Twill not be long now. Dost thou desire to end her by Leader's Claw.
Twistedstar: 'Tis not worth my time. I have a murderer to find.
Hawktalon: Dost thou speak of me?
Twistedstar (growling): The monster reveals himself at last. Prepare for Death's Claws!
Fireshadow: A braggart you are indeed.
Twistedstar (chuckling darkly): Two traitors in a single swipe. I must be fortune's favorite!
Hawktalon: This fight is for us only Twistedstar!
Twistedstar (grinning madly): Two against one is fairer and thou knows 'tis true! But if thou insists!
(The tabby spoke not another word as he launched himself at Hawktalon, bowling the other cat over nearly effortlessly, but the gray tom squirmed and writhed, sending the two tumbling about the ground. Twistedclaw scratched in almost a playful matter, slicing the sides of his opponent. Hawktalon bit at the leader's throat vainly.)
(Lizardeye looked at the ginger and black warrior with his claw still embedded in the fading leader's throat. This was Toadpelt's mate. The one who convinced him to betray his kin. The she-cat's eyes shone with hatred and fury. She seemed to approach in near slow motion. Lizardeye expertly tore the vein in Willowstar's neck and lifted his blood claw from her to charge Fireshadow back. No words expressed their bitter hatred of each other, each blaming the other for Toadpelt's death. In moments they too were thrown into a sprawling brawl, though Lizardeye's movements were too fluid and controlled to be wild. With ease he began to disable the movements of her paws and legs, tearing at muscles that would make maneuvering painful.)
(As the battle raged on, Lizardeye caught sight of something strange. At edge of the small clearing in which their battle was taking place a small spot of red appeared. It looked soft and very much like mud. It could not possibly be blood. Fireshadow, realizing that Lizardeye had caught on, pulled away from him and limped quickly to the red spot, smearing her paws and claws in it. She was about to call Hawktalon to do the same, but she could only stare in horror as the ShadowClan Leader hauled himself off of the lifeless gray body.)
Fireshadow (Enraged): DEATH TO THE TWISTED STAR! THE HORROR OF ALL THE CLANS!
(she launched herself through the air at the small tabby, who, bewildered by her strange actions, rolled out of the way.)
Lizardeye (seeing that his brother does not understand): Watch for her claws brother! She is poison!
(Twistedstar glanced down at her claws. Death Berries! What a marvelous idea! But he ducked and dodged her every fierce strike with incredible caution for a cat with all his lives about him. Lizardeye suddenly felt stricken. Caution had never been a trait of his brother's. Now that he was leader, he ought to have been more reckless than ever! Fearful of its meaning, Lizardeye dashed to the red puddle of death himself and smeared and dug all four of his claws into it before charging swiftly at Fireshadow. He shot past Twistedclaw and struck her squarely in her neck....as squarely as her claw stuck into his own chest. With his last burst of energy, he stuck his claw deeper and pulled it out at last. Then he struggled to release her dead claw from his own chest.)
Lizardeye (gasping): I fear this is the end of me, dear brother. Lead well with all your life...!
Twistedclaw (laughing through the inevitable gurgle of blood): I fear 'tis the end for me too, Dear Brother.
(Lizardeye turned to look at him in horror. There was indeed a tear in his own throat, and surely the poison was well into his blood, already slowing the beat of the tabby's heart)
Lizardeye (a solemn smile): Then we have died for nothing?
Twistedclaw (coughing): Nothing? No. Emberfoot shall lead ShadowClan against WindClan when we are gone.
Lizardeye: How shall she do that when StarClan refuses to grant ShadowClan Leader's their lives? 'Tis that not the very reason thou is dying?
Twistedclaw (lying down, half-closing his eyes): 'Tis....
Lizardeye (dying more slowly): We die then...Join our brother in...(a dry chuckle)...He's not in StarClan.
Twistedclaw: Hmmm...
Lizardeye: Wherever he may be...We shalt join him....Farewell cruel forest...I've learned much from thee...
END SCENE
ACT 5 SCENE ONE
((Emberfoot, Eclipseclaw, Brightfur and Honeydapple stand over the fallen bodies of their two mentors. All are solemn. RiverClan has fallen, most of the Clan slain. The survivors skulk in the crowd of ShadowClan))
Honeydapple: What....will we do...?
Eclipseclaw: Finish their work of course! WindClan will be nothing now that we have trippled our size.
Emberfoot: Her meaning is what shall we do about the Clan. Hence forth they shall know that StarClan itself wages war against us. They refused noble Twistedstar his lives. They will surely deny us ours.
Eclipseclaw: They know not how Twistedstar died. We shall pretend the battle was so fierce and he was so outnumbered that all were lost.
Honeydapple (incredulous): Such deception?!
Emberfoot: 'Tis the only way.
Honeydapple (searching for aid): Brightfur?!
Brightfur: Must be done. Fear not Honeydapple, no cat shall ask you to carry such a burden of lying. Never speak of it and all will be well.
Honeydapple (doubtful): I suppose.
ACT 5 SCENE TWO
((Puddlepelt hides in the dead of night, sheltered by reeds beside the two-leg bridge. She has been there for two full nights. Beside her is Skunktail, now motherless and without siblings. Rainfur, Otterfoot, and Rabbittail had gone ahead.))
Skunktail (soft but bitter): Two nights gone and no scent of him, Puddlepelt. The water's have claimed him.
Puddlepelt (fearful whisper): Never! He swore his return! He gave me his word.
skunktail (irritated): Words don't hold off death, Puddlepelt.
(The gray and white she-cat makes no reply)
Tom: Amazing it is that thou hast not been discovered. Thine tongues wag like dog tails.
(Puddlepelt's eyes light up as her beloved rises out of the water like a ghost beneath the moon. She runs out and brushes his wet fur, licks his face.)
Spottedfur: Shush, enough, 'tis time to go.
Skunktail (snorting): Why such a hurry? Thou took such time to arrive! Let us go, Ravenstar awaits the last RiverClan refugees.
Puddlepelt (brokenly): Oh our home...I can hardly bear to leave it.
(The three exeunt)
ACT 5 SCENE THREE
(Emberflight sits on the gnarled roots of the leader's den. Beneath her are Eclipseclaw (rightside), Honeydapple (Leftside), Brightfur (Middle). It has been days since the loss of the two brothers, but ShadowClan is stable once more. Even the ThunderClan traitors have grown to feel attached to the four she-cats before them. Even former RiverClan cats are less hateful to them than they were to Twistedstar and his brothers.)
EmberSTAR: Our final endeavor begins in a fortnight. The Battle in which the Mighty Clan of Wind Shall fall! The Clan shall be well fed, and sheltered. Although we outnumber WindClan by many, we cannot underestimate their strengths. Take care of thine Clanmates, thou may not see some of them again. But know this! That Snakestar's great vision shall be manifested at last! The Clans shall be one! There will be no more borders, no more forbidden relationships, and no reason to hate each other. This is a war to bring about the Ultimate Peace. Paradise in the forest. So rest well my Clan. Our final battle begins.
